Shorthand-machine for the blind.



C. L. CHINNOC-K.

SHORTHAND MACH|NE FOR THE BLIND.

APPLlCATlON FILED MAY 4. 191?.

Lmmmm meme@ m. 23,1918.

3 SHEE`lS-SHEET1.

C. L. CHINNOCK SHORTHAND MACHINE FOR THE BLIND.

APPLICA-HUN F|LED MAYM |917- Patnted Apr. 23, 1918.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

WIT/VESSES A! TTURll/EVS C. L. CHINNOCK.

SHORTHAND MAcHlNE FOR THE BLIND.

APPLICATION FlLED MAY4 |91?.

Patented Apr. 23I 1918.

3 SHEES-SHEET 3.

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3peelcatfo oJLetters Patent. Pmbrgymtrgrll dpr, 23 dlwjll application died lllay al, 1317. aerial Ilo. 166,339.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that ll, @Hannes L. Crum.

Noon., a citizen of the United States, and

, resident ofthe city of hlew York, borough 'lll of Brooklyn, county of Kings,'and State of `hlew York, have invented a new and linproved Shorthand-Machine for the` Blind, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to linger operatedA machines such astypewritersor the like, and has particular reference to stenographic or shorthand machines. y

Among the principal objects vof the invention is to provide a stenographic or shorthand machine of unusually simple construction adapting it peculiarly for convenient manipulation by blind operators.

With the foregoing and other objects in view the invention consists in the arrangement and combination of parts hereinafter described and claimed, and while the invention is not restricted to the enact details of construction disclosed or suggested herein, a

still for the purpose of illustrating a practical embodiment thereof reference is had to the accompanying drawings, in which .ffl

like reference 'characters designate'the same parts in the several views, and in which Figure 1 is a plan view of the main parts of the machine with the paper reel removed. Fig. 2 is a vertical centrall longitudinal section.

hig. 3 is a vertical transverse section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1.

` Fig. 4L is a vertical sectional detail substantially on the line t-d of lig. 1 showing particularly the action of the signal devices.

llig. 511s a perspective detail of a fraent of the paper ribbon.

lFi 6 is a transverse sectional detail on the line 6-6 ofalig. 5. n

Fig. 7 is a rear elevation of the ldver supporting pedestal indicating the rearwardly converging pairs of side faces against which the levers are Divoted.

Referring now more articularly to the f rawings ll show a mac ine comprising a base 10 to which are connected vertical side frame members 11 and 12 and front andrear end members 13 and lll suitably connected to one another. A bar-16l entends e'ross the open space between the side la.

` 21 and 22.

lframe and just back of the transverse center thereof is located an u right pedestal 17 fixed rigidly to thebasc y means of fasteners 18, said pedestal constituting a fulcrum member for the levers 1 9, 19', 20, 20', 21, 'llhe pairs of levers having similar reference characters are pivoted upon opposite sides of the pedestal on pivots 23, the axes of the pivots of each pair being directly opposite each other but at a. slight angle to each other due to the rearward convergence of the opposite sides of the edestal corresponding to or occasioning the orward Haring of the levers. 'llhe lever 22 arranged substantially in the longitudinal center of the machine and midway between the levers of eacl of the other` pairs, is pivoted at 2l upon a lug 25 projecting forwardly from the front of the pedestal. 'llhe levers 19 to 21, being fulcrumed Abetween lupper ends while the lower ends of the springs are connected to the levers just in front of their pivots.v The upper edges of all of these levers are adapted to strike against a rubber roller 29 or its equivalent journa-led across the front end of the frame on a bar 30.

lllll 'llhe principle of operation of the machine depends upon the making upon a paper or other analogous ribbon or tape 3l. certain impressions adaptable for reading by the sense of'touch in a manner well understood in this art.. lhe paper ribbon is provided on a roll carried upon a `reel shown as a whole at 32 and com rising a hub 33 journaled upon a spind e 341:. The reel cornprises also two oEposite side plates 35 and 36 held in place y means of a thumb nut 3l' ,screwed upon the spindle 34k. The spindle and the parts carried thereby are mounted upon the lupper end of a shank 38 con,- nected through a transverse pivot 39 at the front end of what I may term an anvil member 40. The lower end of the shank is provided with a lug or projection 41 on its rear side which strikes against the top of the anvil member and, thereby limits the upward swinging movement of the reel into operative posit-ion to -the vertical. The weight of thereel, however, in this position all lies on the opposite side of the lug 41 from the pivot 39 making thereby a stable position for the reel and yet providing for the easy lowering thereof to folded or nested position as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. A2 where the shank is adapted to rest upon the upper edge of the crossbar 15,k this being the position assumed by the reel when the machine is folded or out of operation.

The construction of the reel as to size and ends of relative proportions therefore well adapts it to folding within the space between the front and rear portions of the machine. The paper ribbon is drawn from the reel and threaded beneath a guide roller 42 at the rear end of the right side of the machine and thence is drawn through a horizontal .'uideway comprising a substantially imperforate at bottom 43 anda pair of upper inwardly projecting spaced flanges 44. The these flanges are deflected upwardly at 44" just below the rollerl 42 to provide an easy entrance'for the ribbon. The bottom plate 43, however, is provided with a central slot 45 adjacent to the right hand end thereof.l lFrom the guideway just described the paper ribbon is delivered through between a pair of feed rollers 46 and 47, the former having end flanges 46 and the latter being positively connected in any suitable manner to a vrock shaft 48 leading along in a horizontal direction on the outside of the frame and parallel to the side frame 12'thereof. Said shaft 48 is journaled at its front and rear ends in upward extensions 49 and 50 of the front and rear end The frontend of the shaft 48 is provided' with a knurled head 51 through which the operator ma rotate the shaft. to initiate the h threading o the strip of paper between the rollers 46 and '47. The roller 47 is fixed upon the shaft 48 for rotation therewith. The upper roller, however, is secured to a counter-shaft 52 arranged above and paralell tothe shaft 48 and mounted in slots 53 in the upward extensions and 50. A pair of springs 54 and 55 are connected at their upper ends to the ends of the countershaft 4`and at their`lower ends to a lug 56 and the end of the shaft, 48 respectively.

These springs serve to hold the upper roller 46\down with its flanges aforesaid 1n proper contact with f the' paper so that when the lower roller is rotated, causing the rotation panels respectively.

of the upper roller, the paper will be pro'- jected through between the rollers with certainty. The counter-shaft and upper roller are rotated positively from the lower shaft by means of a pair -of gears 57 and 58 connected to the lower and upper shafts respectively.

The paper feeding rollers just referred to are operated automatically during the normal operation of the machine by means of a ratchet wheel 59 secured upon the shaft 48 justin the rear of the upward projection 49 at the front of the machine. Said wheel is provided with teeth equally spaced according to the extent of movement desired for the paper. A dog 60 pivotally connected at 61 to the outer end of a lever 62 coperates with said ratchet wheel teeth to causerotation of the same step by step in the -desired direction. The lever is pivoted lat 63 on the front panel 13 and its inner end is located practically directly above the spacing bar or lever 22. A light spring 64 extending between the lower portion of the dog and adjacent portion of the lever 62 tends to hold the hook portion of the dog in position to engage thevratchet wheel teeth. A stop lug 65 connected to the extension 49 on the outside of the dog limits the outward movement thereof.

Referring now especially to Fig. 3 I show at 66 a guide plate secured upon the front face of the front panel 13 and covering a large opening 13 formed in said panel. Said guide plate is provided with a series of seven vertical parallel slots 67 and 68. The slot 68 is for the accommodation of the spacing lever 22 and is longer or extends farther downwardly than the other slots 67 in which the key levers operate. The lower ends of the six slots 67 are on the same level.

\ 69 indicates a yoke of substantially U-form `which liesl beneath all .of said levers 19 to 22 but out of contact therewith. A rubber roller 72 journaled on a spindle 73 extends between the side portions of the yoke and ears against the lower edges of all of said levers. The yoke is drawn upwardly normally to the position just indicated by a pair of springs 74 having 4their upper ends connected to the crossbar 15. A link 75 is connected at 76 to the center of the crossbar 71 at its lower end and has pin and slot connection at 77 at its upper end with the inner end of the lever 62. The link 7,5 being central of the machine is provided with a vertical slot 75 through which the spacing lever 22 extends. From the construction justdescribed it will be appreciated 'that by depressing any one of the key. or spacing levers until it strikes the lower end of its vslot the lever 62 will be rocked around its naam pivot 69 b virtue ol the linkconnection 75 which wil elevate' the do 60 to the extent of oneor two teeth depen ing upon the particular .lever actuated. 'llhat is to say, any

A 22 operating in the longer slot 68 will move lever operating in the sloth? will cause the dog to engage the next tooth, but the lever the dog to lengage -the second tooth. 'lhe construction of the yoke 69 insures that all tendencl 'ol the yoke to twist even thouh actuated7 by one ol the 'side levers willpractically eliminatedthereby insuring that all the lever 52 will be operated with precision. rlhe roller 72 bearing the direct contact ol the actuating lever at any time rovides lor a rollin action or contact thus eliminating sliding gr touch for'the operator. the pivots 70 for the yoke are eccentric to the pivots tor the levers there would be a material amount olslidinglriction between the levers and the yoke but for this rolling contact. en the actuated lever is released it returns promptly to its normal position, striking against the bilder 29, being elevated by the Y spring 28.

ll w1ll now describe the impression ldevices with respect to the strip ol paper 3l.l lllor each of the key levers ll provide a needle or plunger pivotally connected at its lower end to the rear end of the lever and having its upperend or point guided -in or through a guide'block 7 8 just below the anvil d0, said block being provided with sin holes 78 arranged in three pairs corresponding tojthe vseveral keys. .'llhe plungers are indicated at 19, 2()aL and 21, the plungers of each pair being similarl indicated. The anvil mem-- ber is provide on its lower surlacewith depressions 19, 20"- and 2l",A also in pairs just above the respective plun ers and in alinement with the guide holes 8. (See Fig. a.)

'lhe strip of paper 3l is ided between the anvild and guide block i8, the direction or manner of guiding'the paper being central ,4 with respect to the series or group of impression devices just described. lll an one ot' the'keys 26, or any combination o said keys, be 'depressed' by the operators `lingers the correspondingplungers will be actuated upwardly forming hispherical nodules 31 or imperforate projections which are so l,

constituted as to remain as permanent teaitures of the strip ol paper tormin .1. thereb a record adapted to be readily read through the sense ol the touch of the operators gers. en the keys are depressed and the impressions are being made in the record the dog'60 is operated in .its idle' direction and A, when the operated. lever' or levers return to "their normal posltlon the s acing .actuation takes place automatically y' virtue el the springs 74. lhs 4will be appreciated from, Fig. 2 especially the impressed zone ot the paper rip lies betw the edel portions ictionas well as providing an easy j having a substantie 'l'ront, pairs ol key levers pivoted to id oted to c plungers connected'to the respective pairs ol thereol that are pped between vthe danges 46 of the leed roller da and the main perf tion or the roller 4l?, so that the operation ot the rollers will not interfere with or daage the record Vmadeon the strip.

llt Y. ill thus be seen that the construction and operation ol the-machine are ol the most` simple nature and designed to be practised with the least amount of care or tatie. rlhe operation ot the machine is practically automatic beyond thesimple manipulation of the keys 26 and 27. `Should the paper part or be entirely withdrawn trom the 'roller it is. essential that the operator be apprised 4ot this fact by some audible means,

bearing inv mind that the mace is glesied especially for blind operators. meet this reuirement therefore l rovide a novel type o 11" signal including a be 'l' 9 xed upon the rear panel lll of the machine just yback oil and below the paper ide 43 and to the lett of the slot a5 forme in the bottom ot the guide.) .dt this slot is pivoted a'haml mer 80 having a shank 8l, the shank having a horizontal portion 81 constituting the anis ot the hammer journaled just below the guide and transversely thereof. d tone 82 is secured to this transverse aule portion 8l? at slightly more than a right angle to the direction ol the main portion 81 ot the shank. The arrangement is such that the tongue projects in a horizontal position to lthe lelt ol the aule 81 lying in the slot d5 and the tongue is normall held in place by the strip ot paper. By this means the hammer is held'elevated but not quite in a vertical position abovesaid anis. (See lPig. 4L.) rl`he center of ravity ol the hammer is thus at one side ot t e anis 8l but not so lar as to cause any material dra upon the paper. When, however, the en ot the paper is reached the tongue is released thereby allowside laces, a. spacin lever pivconvergin lug, pairs ot vertica y operated ey levers at the rear ends thereot, record strip guide means above they plungers, 4and means to automatically leed the record strip coincidentally withthe movement oit the key. nd spacing levers, u lll im er dll ldd

llllb lllb 2. In a shorthand machine, the combination of a base, an upwardly projecting pedestal fixed thereto between the center and the rear end thereof, said pedestal being provided with pairs of vertical lateral plane faces oi'set laterally from one another, and at different levels, pairs of key levers pivoted on horizontal pivots upon the corresponding pairsof plane faces, said faces and levers all converging toward the same point at the rear of the machine, a plurality of pairs of upwardly projecting plungers connected to the rear ends of the corresponding pairs of levers, said plungers all being adjacent to said point of convergence, means to guide a record strip transversely across the rear end of the machine just above the upper ends of said plungers, means coperating with said guide means to cause the plungers when actuated upwardly by the key levers to form permanent record impressions on the strip, and automatic feeding means for the strip acting upon the edges thereof, substantially asset forth.

3. In a shorthand machine for the blind, the combination of key operated impression means including a group of upwardly operated plungers, a reel for the roll of record strip, means to guide the strip longitudinally through the machine over said impression means, and feeding means acting to drawvthe strip step by step from the roll coincidentally with the movement of the v impression means, said feeding means comprising a shaft journaled longitudinally of the machine, a roller fixed to the shaft, means'coperating with said roller to grip the edges of the strip, and means secured to the frontend of the shaft to enable the operator to rotate the 'shaft and feeding means to initiate the action of the strip auxiliary go the automatic operation ofthe feeding evice. l

4. In a machine of the character set forth,

opening and havin a series of vertical par allel slots formed t erein, a series of levers extending through said slots, the lower ends of the slots serving to limit the downward 5o movement of the levers and one of the slots being longer than the others, means to uide the impression strip throughthe mac ine, impression means actuated by certain of said levers, means for feeding the impression strip with relation to the impression means, and connections between said feeding means and levers serving to cause automatic actuation of the feeding means according to the actuation of the levers in the longer or shorter slots.

5. In a machine of the character set forth, the combination ofl a frame including a ccntral transverse crossbar, a guide for an impression strip, impression devices acting upon the strip while it is guided through the machine, a support for a roll of said strip, said support comprising a reel and a shank, the shank being pivoted to a portion of the frame and having a lug limiting the swinging movement of the shank around its pivot so that the reel is held normally `by gravity in stable position above the impression means but is adapted to fold forwardly and rest in idle position upon said crossbar, and means to feed the strip endwise through the machine from the roll.

6. In a shorthand machine for the blind, the combination of a guide foran impression strip, said guide having a base having a slot therein and also including edge flanges, impression means coperating with the guide adjacent to the end of the Slot, a bell below the guide, a hammer having a shank journaled across the slot and below the guide, and a tongue connected to the hammer shank and held normally in said 'slot bythe impression strip in such position as to fall automatically and strike the bell when the impression strip parts or passes beyond the tongue.

CHARLES LEROY oHINNooK. 

